Venezuela wins first World Baseball Classic title with 3-2 victory over United States
Venezuela defeated the United States 3-2 in the World Baseball Classic final on March 17, 2026, at loanDepot Park in Miami, Florida, securing the country's first championship in the tournament's history.[1][2]
The victory followed Venezuela's semifinal win over Italy on March 16, 2026. Previous WBC champions are Japan (2006, 2009, 2023), the Dominican Republic (2013) and the United States (2017).[1]
Eduardo Rodriguez, a left-handed pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks who turns 33 in April 2026, started for Venezuela and pitched 4.1 innings, allowing one hit to Brice Turang of the Milwaukee Brewers while striking out four batters, including U.S. captain Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees.[3]
Venezuela took a 1-0 lead in the third inning on a sacrifice fly by Maikel Garcia. In the fifth, runners advanced on a wild pitch by U.S. starter Nolan McLean of the New York Mets before another sacrifice fly by Garcia made it 2-0. Wilyer Abreu, an outfielder for the Boston Red Sox, then hit a solo home run later in the inning to extend the lead to 3-0.[4]
The U.S. offense managed only two hits through seven innings against Venezuela's pitching staff, including a single by Bryce Harper of the Philadelphia Phillies off Jose Butto of the New York Mets.
In the bottom of the eighth, Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals walked, and Harper hit a two-run home run to cut the deficit to 3-2.
Venezuela regained momentum in the top of the ninth against Garrett Whitlock of the Boston Red Sox. A walk, stolen base by pinch-runner Javier Sanoja and RBI double by Eugenio Suarez of the Texas Rangers scored the go-ahead run for a 3-2 lead.
Daniel Palencia of the Chicago Cubs closed the bottom of the ninth, striking out Kyle Schwarber and Roman Anthony while Gunnar Henderson flied out, sealing the win.
loanDepot Park, home of the Miami Marlins, hosted the semifinals and final, as it did for the 2023 WBC championship game.[2][5]
Sources
- Wikipedia, "World Baseball Classic", accessed October 2024, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Baseball_Classic
- World Baseball Classic official site, "2026 Schedule", accessed October 2024, https://www.worldbaseballclassic.com/schedule/2026/
- Baseball-Reference, "Eduardo Rodriguez", accessed October 2024, https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/rodried03.shtml
- MLB.com, "Wilyer Abreu", accessed October 2024, https://www.mlb.com/player/wilyer-abreu-671737
- MLB.com, "loanDepot park", accessed October 2024, https://www.mlb.com/marlins/ballpark
